


Love is Blind and Also Stupid

by BotchedExperiment



Category: Camp Camp (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Cults, Angst, Cults, Gen, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Poisoning, max is smart and kinda hungry, there is definitely nothing wrong with daniel at all
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-20
Updated: 2019-01-28
Packaged: 2019-10-13 12:36:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,286
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17488166
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BotchedExperiment/pseuds/BotchedExperiment
Summary: David would never forget the day a handsome stranger came up to him.





	1. Chapter 1

David would never forget the day a handsome stranger came up to him.

The cafe he'd found was quiet and comfortable, and David chose to spend his afternoon there while he looked up job openings and applied for positions all day.

He wished he'd known in advance how rough it would be to find a job in this city. Maybe he would have made some better, less impulsive decisions if he did some research beforehand. But alas, there he was.

Everything would work out, he was sure of it. And he had enough savings to live comfortably until he found a place that would hire him.

... Maybe David could still change his mind and move back in with his mother. Or - God forbid - Gwen.

He shook his head at the thought. No! This was him being a responsible adult. Moving away, making a life for himself... _Everything would work out._

"Is the coffee good?"

David looked up to the source of the voice. His eyes widened at the striking blue eyes that contrasted with the man's vanilla blonde hair. Oh God, he was staring...

"I.. uh, yes!" He offered a smile that soon faded away when he realized what the man asked him in the first place. "Actually- no..."

The stranger raised an eyebrow. "No?"

 _What was he doing?_ "I mean!" David tried quickly to save himself from any more embarrassment. "I didn't order coffee," he said, holding up the paper cup. "It's a steamer, actually. With strawberry flavoring, and it's really good! I'm not a huge fan of coffee, to be honest."

The stranger blinked, and David decided to shut up. He embarrassed himself enough for the whole year.

A rather charming smile grew on the man's face. He didn't seem too fazed by David's inability to have a normal conversation like a normal person.

"Well, that's fantastic! Maybe I'll get one of those, as well! Strawberry you said?"

And that was the moment David was completely smitten with the random stranger. Not just anyone could take his drink order seriously.

The man returned a few minutes later with his drink in-hand. He took a sip and smiled. "Thanks for the recommendation, stranger!"

David chuckled awkwardly before shaking the hand the stranger offered.

"I'm Daniel!"

"David! Nice to meet you!"

"Do you mind if I..?"

The stranger - Daniel nodded toward the empty chair across from David. David pulled his computer closer to himself to make more room at the table and eagerly gestured.

"Be my guest! It's nice to meet someone new."

Daniel took another sip of his drink. "It sure is. Say, are you new to town? I don't think I've seen you around before!"

David gave an admitting nod. "Yup! My third week here."

"What brings you to this city?"

"Well!" David breathed out a sigh before closing his laptop. "I inherited my grandfather's house here, actually. Everyone told me to sell it but... I saw it as an opportunity for a change, you know?"

"Your grandfather lived here, hm?"

"He owned a few different properties. This was just one of many."

Daniel nodded in understanding. "Well, I think I speak for everyone when I say that it's great to have you here. What important thing were you working on over there?" He asked, gesturing toward the laptop.

"I- well..." David stumbled over his words. He wasn't used to someone asking about his life; it was kind of nice. If only he didn't have to tell this handsome, well-dressed man that he was currently jobless and living on inheritance. Well, he didn't have to, but for some reason David wanted to.

So he did.

All through the big explanation, Daniel listened thoughtfully with a sweet smile on his face. The smile didn't falter when David told him about his best friend who was currently pissed at him for moving away, or about his father's passing-

Wait.

Why was he telling all of that to a stranger? Why was he _comfortable_ telling all of that to a stranger? Maybe it had been too long since David had been listened to, and he decided to unload on the first poor soul who asked him a personal question.

His grandfather's death hadn't been easy for him, but David had to be strong for his mom. She was taking it so much harder. And Gwen... Gwen was there for him, but she wasn't good at listening, and that was okay. That was who Gwen was.

David knew that if he wasn't strong, the negative things in the world win, and he wouldn't let that happen. He couldn't.

"It sounds like you could use a few more good friends in town, hm?"

"I'd never turn down a new friend," David replied happily.

"You know," Daniel started, a soft, sympathetic tone still evident in his voice. "I'm here to meet my group for our weekly get-together. We're just planning a celebration today, not very exciting, but I think they'd love to meet you."

"That sounds fun!" The mere idea of meeting more people in this town excited him. He was having so trouble talking to everyone, they all knew each other already.

Daniel introduced him to a nice and charismatic group of people. They were so open with each other, so passionate about whatever they were working on, and strangely happy to welcome a stranger into their group. For the first time since he moved here, David felt accepted.

He recognized the way they spoke and acted. David came to the conclusion they were a church group. He'd spent the majority of his life going to church with his mother, and he liked to think he could identify certain kinds of people when he saw them.

A woman, Jen, gathered her papers and inserted them into the binder that they seemed to use for event planning.

"I'll meet you back at the building tomorrow or whatever," She told Daniel. "See you guys later. Nice meeting you, David." David tried hard not to notice that she winked at him as she left the cafe.

It wouldn't hurt to ask, right? "Do you all go to church together?"

Instead of answering, the others looked to Daniel to answer for them. And he did, with a warm chuckle. "Not quite! We _are_ an organization, though. We have a few charity programs, and we help train people to reach their full potential!"

"Really?" David said. "That's interesting!"

"I'm glad you think so." Daniel offered a smile David couldn't help but fall for. "Why don't you come to our five-hundred member celebration next week? There will be so many people for you to meet!"

David loved the sound of that.

\-----

David wouldn't have been so comfortable with Daniel had he known at the beginning that he was the one and only leader of it all. Daniel was the man who kept everything running, who made every decision. And David was just some guy. He couldn't imagine what this seemingly perfect man saw in a guy like him, but he was okay with that. He liked having someone to talk to.

"Wow, this office is amazing! This is all yours?"

The room was white but lacked the unfortunate sterility most offices had. It was covered in modern decor and furniture; David almost didn't feel important enough to be in such a fancy room.

"Yep! All mine."

Knowing what an important man Daniel was now, David was flattered when he had offered to give him a tour of the large building. Most of it was offices, as one would assume for the sort of place, but David couldn't help but find all of it fascinating. Some of that fascination may have had to do with the fact that Daniel was adorable and handsome and he could watch the man talk all day.

 _Ugh._ Gwen would be teasing him relentlessly if she were with him.

Oh. He should text her sometime. David missed her.

"Say, David, why don't you have a seat?" Daniel said, gently laying a hand on his back and guiding him to a leather sofa. David could melt under the small bit of physical contact.

He complied, but not without confusion. "O-okay. Wha…?"

Daniel sat next to him, stretching an arm out on the back of the couch."Are you still having trouble finding work?"

"As a matter of fact, yes," David admitted. He fidgeted with the cuff of his dress shirt. It was the only one he owned, an old white one Gwen bought him back in high school when he used _'I don't have anything nice to wear!'_ as an excuse not to go to homecoming. "But I'm hoping to get some calls about interviews any day now!"

Daniel didn't miss a beat before, "We have an opening here."

David's heart started racing. Could it be that easy? "Here, as in…?"

"Here, right here!" Daniel smiled excitedly and pointed to where they were sitting. "Work for me, David. I can tell you want to do some good in the world!"

"I…" he couldn't think of a reason not to. A job was being handed to him after he'd spent a month applying and asking around for any kind of work. Not to mention, a job here might actually give him a chance to get to know this man. "I'd love to!"

Maybe it _c_ _ould_ be that easy.


	2. Chapter 2

David had a job. Not just any job, but one working directly under Daniel. He was the right-hand man, the one everyone came to when Daniel needed to know something. He was the one who asked Daniel to approve others' decisions and the one who was in charge of telling the staff what he wanted for lunch.

The kitchen - David learned - felt like another dimension.

While the rest of the building was quiet and sophisticated, the kitchen was full of stressed people yelling and struggling to get everything done. For some reason, David liked going down there. The kitchen staff had a strange fondness about them, like they were their own family inside the big family that was Daniel's organization. He really admired their work. They tried so hard, and their efforts paid off; every meal they made for Daniel looked  _ perfect. _

"Want a taste?"

David looked up from the simple sandwich he brought from home. Daniel's plate was full of scrumptious-looking food, and he was constantly reminding David that he could order lunch from the kitchen as well. "No, but thank you!"

David could hear Daniel chuckle, even over the conversations and clattering plates of everyone else in the cafeteria.

"Really, try it! Heck, if you like it, you can have half!" He held up a forkful of pasta that looked so tempting.

So,  _ so _ tempting. David narrowed his eyes. "You're just trying to sell me on the food."

Daniel grinned. "Yep! You got me. You're the only one around here who brings their own lunch."

"I brought my favorite sandwich today!"

"Ham and cheese with mayonnaise and pickles?"

"…Maybe."

"You bring that practically every day, David! Live a little! It's almost as if you don't think you deserve some good food."

He raised his fork again, and this time David didn't refuse. He went to take the utensil from Daniel's hands, but instead of handing it over, he simply held it in front of David's mouth.

"Go on!" David loved hearing him sound so giggly. He had his moments where he could come off as stoic and serious, but David thought that this goofy guy was who Daniel truly was.

His mouth was overwhelmed with delectable pasta. He closed his eyes and couldn't help making a noise of delight at the taste. David's eyes opened to several people glancing in their direction.

"Oh," David blushed furiously and hid his face in shame. "People are looking. That wasn't appropriate, I'm sorry."

"What…?" Daniel questioned with a raised eyebrow. He scanned the room, and people quickly looked away and pretended like they were talking to each other. "Oh, don't worry about that. I'm the boss, it's appropriate if I say so," He joked. At least David assumed he was joking.

\-----

Things were going so well. Daniel had learned his newest employee was talented at encouraging people, so David was assigned to many projects and fundraisers that involved people outside the organization. He managed to get plenty of volunteers and pledge donations for each program they ran.

Daniel asked him to dinner, telling David that he had yet another project for him and offering a knowing smirk afterward. At this point, they had eaten plenty of meals together. Well, mainly lunch… but dinner wasn't that much different, right?

"We're having a fundraiser for our children's home, I'd like you to organize it."

"Absolutely! What kind of- wait, children's home?"

Daniel's brows perked up. "Oh, you didn't know! Yes, we've got a home for kids just down the block. I'm sure you've seen it."

David thought about his drive to work and remembered a big building, with white siding and a silver playground peeking out from behind it. He would have never guessed that they owned the property.

"I… guess I just assumed it was a daycare center or something…" he shook his head and forced himself to go back to the matter at hand. "Anyway! What sort of fundraiser were you thinking?"

"A dinner!"

"We can do that! Anything else?"

"I think that we should have the children sing a song or something, you know? To show people who they'll be taking care of when they donate."

"Something cute," David concluded.

Daniel smiled and nodded. "Something cute. Tug at people's heartstrings, David. You're good at that!"

They went over the details. David noted the menu, venue size, even down to the color scheme his boss wanted before they were finished eating. The rest of the evening was spent having pleasant, personal conversation.

David tensed up when the man sitting across from him laid a hand on top of his. Was it possible that Daniel was expressing more affection than what would be normal for friends? Gwen's sarcastic voice sounded in David's head,  _ 'Oooh does he  **like** like you?'. _

"David," Daniel's voice had gotten softer, quieter. "I hope you know how much I appreciate your help. I know I've been keeping you busy. Heck, I'm pretty sure you slept in my office the other night!"

Busted. "I'm so sorry about that, I just-"

"No no, take my sofa whenever you want! That office is practically as much yours as it is mine at this point."

David blinked. Daniel wasn't wrong, now that he thought about it. They'd spent so much time discussing and planning everything, and Daniel had let him use his office for work on stressful days. Which - lately - was every day.

"Well, thank you!"

"No, thank  _ you ,  _ David." Daniel moved his hand in favor of looking at the dessert menu on the table. "Want to share some dessert?"

**\-----**

The foyer was huge and bare. White walls and posters with the organization's logo facing the front door. Not a bit of color to be found, but all just as modern and full of technology as the main building. There was what looked to be a playroom to his right, but again, it was void of any color and full of whites and grays.

David weaved through the kids running around, singing songs and reading books he didn't recognize. All of them were in white uniforms, probably easier to keep track of them. For a stranger walking into their home, none of them looked at him twice.

"Excuse me, could you tell me where-" The kid rushed by him before he could finish. "I just need to find the off-" nope.

David sighed and accepted that he might need to do a little searching to find the person in charge.

"Upstairs." Came a voice from his left.

A boy with fluffy black hair and an angry expression sat in the corner against the wall. David hadn't even noticed him when he walked in, the kid managed to blend in so well.

"Sorry, what was that?"

"The office. It's upstairs," he said with an irritated huff, gesturing toward the big staircase in the middle of the room.

"Would you mind taking me there? I'm here to talk to the director, my name's-"

"David."

David blinked. "Wait a minute, how do you know my name?"

The kid laughed, a genuine laugh that made David wonder if he was missing something. "Everyone knows who you are. The only person's name we hear more than yours around here is Daniel's. And they won't let us forget your goddamn faces. That's why no one's gonna talk to you, because they know who you are and they know they don't have permission."

He tried to figure out what this kid was saying for a good long while, staring blankly as he went through all the possibilities in his head. But he'd never been there before, and he didn't even know it existed until a few days ago. How could any of the kids possibly know who he was? Why did they need permission to talk to him? It was possible it was a security measure for the home, instructing the kids not to speak to strangers. But apparently he was no stranger to them.

"And no, I can't take you there. I'm in time out, because apparently I'm three."

"I'm sure I could put in a good word for you, helping me and all!" David tried.

"They'd skin my ass alive if they found out that I talked to you." The kid scoffed, then looked a little proud as he added, "and that I said ‘ass’."

David looked at the building around him, feeling intimidated by such a big place. He saw so many doors that led to so many rooms, and there was probably just as many on the second level. He didn't know what he was doing, and he'd look like an idiot walking around opening every door until he found the office.

"Please? I'll tell them you helped me!"

He thought for a moment, same annoyed expression painted on his face. "If I get in trouble again, they're gonna make me sit here until bedtime."

"Oh, I'm sure they wouldn’t!"

A smirk. "Yeah, whatever you say, dude."

After a long pause, the boy sighed and stood from his spot in the corner. He took a few seconds to stretch, and then adjust his clothes. The kid quickly tucked in his white polo and brushed his hair away from his face, almost reflexively, like it was something he knew he was supposed to do.

As David scanned around, he realized he would never have wanted to grow up here. Maybe he could raise enough money to make this home better for the kids. That was why he was given the fundraiser project after all, wasn’t it?

"Okay," the boy sighed out. "Let's go."

They walked up the stairs and turned into the left hallway. There was the office right at the end. The boy stopped outside the door, adjusted his appearance one last time, and led David in.

It wasn’t fancy like Daniel's. In fact, it was just as bare as the rest of the building was. An older woman shot up out of her seat.

"Max! You were told to stay there until dinner!"

The kid, (Max, apparently) shrugged. "He needed my help finding your office," he said, throwing his thumb over his shoulder at David.

She looked up, eyes widening at David's presence. David expected to be greeted, or for Max to be told good job for helping someone who needed it. So, David stepped back in alarm when the woman snatched Max's arm, knelt down, and looked him straight in the eyes.

"Don't ever do that again, do you hear me?"

"B-but-"

David didn't know that a kid who acted so apathetic could look so terrified.

"No!" She yanked his arm once again. "I told you to stay there, what did you do?"

Max whimpered. "I was helping-"

"No, what did you do?"

There was a long terrifying pause, David's body tensing. He didn’t want to be here, he didn’t want to see this. 

"I disobeyed."

The woman loosened her grip on him, nodding in satisfaction at his answer. "You did." Her hand stayed around Max's arm as she turned to David. "Sorry about that, sir. It won't happen again."

Finally coming out of his shock, David shook his head. "No! No no, he didn’t do anything wrong! I came to him and asked him to bring me here."

David hadn’t realized how many rules Max must have broken just to have a conversation with him. He wasn’t about to bring up any of that. He couldn’t watch the poor kid get screamed at again. Max's eyes were red-rimmed and filled with tears, and it broke David's heart knowing that he was the reason for it.

The woman nodded. "I apologize. Let us know when you're on your way and we'll have someone waiting to escort you next time. Is that alright?"

"No. I- I mean…" He wanted to leave, but he had a job to do. Maybe with new donations they could hire a more supportive staff there at the children's home, because David really didn’t like this woman. "Could you please let him go?" He finally asked when he saw her grip on Max tighten.

"Sir, this child’s behavior can’t just be ignored. He's never going to learn if-"

"Let him go," David begged.

Her mouth formed a thin line and she stood still for a moment before releasing her grip and shoving Max out the door. "You're kidding yourself if you think you're eating dinner tonight, Max." It was hushed, but David heard it loud and clear.

Shivers went down his spine. He wanted to leave.

Suddenly, she was a pleasant old lady with a smile and kind voice. "What can I help you with?"

\-----

David's original plan was to go home after his meeting at the children's home, but he couldn’t bring himself to forget about what he'd seen. The image of Max going from indifferent to scared in a matter of seconds was still clear as day, and he wouldn’t be able to enjoy himself at home if he didn’t do something.

So, David walked into Daniel's office. It was almost time for him to leave, but maybe he could catch him. Sure enough, Daniel was still at his desk, reviewing papers.

"David! How'd it go at the children's home?"

David's silence and grim expression brought a frown to Daniel's face. He put his papers away and stood up.

"What happened?"

"I don't like the way those kids are treated, Daniel."

Daniel narrowed his eyes at his as if to figure out what in the world he was talking about.

"What do you mean?"

"I think they're hurting them. I convinced this boy to leave time out to help me find the office, and he got in trouble for-"

He was cut off by Daniel raising his hand. The frown was replaced by a knowing smile. "Would this boy be Max, by any chance?"

"…Yeah?" David answered slowly. "How did you-"

A chuckle. "I've heard of the infamous Max. Listen David, I know his discipline can seem a little harsh at times, but it's what he needs! Max is the one problem child in the whole facility. He just needs to learn that he can't go through life doing whatever he wants!"

David wasn’t so sure. Max didn’t seem like much of a problem child. Maybe a little mischievous, but hey, wasn’t that just kids in general? David couldn’t figure out why his boss wasn’t as alarmed by all of it as he was.

"In fact, the director and I have already decided that he won't be at the fundraiser banquet. We can't risk him ruining it with one of his little stunts."

Nothing he said made things sound better. David wouldn’t be able to stop thinking about Max's safety throughout the whole fundraiser planning. So David made a decision.

"You know, Daniel, I used to be a camp counselor!"

"Really? Huh, that’s-”

"So I know kids, and I think that I can have Max ready to sing with the other kids by the time of the fundraiser."

Daniel raised an eyebrow. "You think that you can turn  _ Max _ into an obedient child in a matter of a few weeks?" he asked in disbelief.

David proudly nodded. "I know I can. I just need some one-on-one time with him until then. Maybe you could get me permission to watch him during the day?"

Daniel didn’t look so convinced at first, and he thought about it long and hard. "Well, I know that they would be thankful to be rid of him for a while..."

"Is that a yes?"

"...You bet it is!"

David made a noise of excitement, and before he realized what he was doing, his lips were pressed against Daniel's.

He pulled back quickly and covered his mouth with a gasp. His boss' eyes were wide and confused.

"I am so sor-" He didn’t have a chance to finish his apology before he was pulled back into the kiss. This wasn’t how he expected his evening to go, but David was okay with it.


	3. Chapter 3

David woke to the loud, piercing noise of his phone ringing. He rubbed his eyes, propping himself on his elbow and blindly reaching for the source of the horrible sound. It took a few tries before his thumb successfully found the answer button.

"Hello?"

"David, what the hell? Why haven't you been answering?"

"Gwen? Answering…?" He pulled his phone away from his ear and sure enough he had several missed calls. Not only from that morning, but from all of yesterday too. "Oh, sorry. My phone's been on silent… haven't checked it in a while," David punctuated it with a yawn. "What's up?"

Gwen scoffed. "What's up?"

David, too fogged by sleep to know the impending doom, replied with a mere, "Mhm?"

"What's _up?!_ You haven't called me since you moved and you're wondering what's up?"

Uh oh. It didn't take knowing her for ten years to know that Gwen was pissed. Hey, at least he was wide awake now.

David winced and sat up on the edge of his bed, running his fingers through his hair in a sad attempt to make it look good before work. "I'm-" he sighed, feeling a pang of guilt. "I'm sorry, Gwen. I've been busy and I… I kind of thought that you were mad at me."

A deep, frustrated sigh on the other end. "I mean, I _was_ mad at you. But… I miss you, David. And I really thought you'd call, and- ugh, I don't know. Just tell me how you're doing?"

The redhead grinned. He couldn't believe how nice it was to hear her voice, to talk to her and tell her all about his life in the new town. As David got ready for work, he told her everything, from the fundraisers he was in charge of to the handsome guy he worked with. And Gwen complained about work, her 'dumb cubicle prison but the benefits are nice I guess' and how she was in charge of a bunch of incompetent interns.

"So how's the house?" Gwen asked. Her voice on speakerphone echoed throughout the bathroom as David made a second attempt on his hair.

"It's great! It's almost too big for me. I don't spend much time here, though. I've been working a lot."

"Yeah, it sounds like it. But, I'm sure you don't mind spending your whole day with Dreamy Daniel."

David chuckled. "Not at all."

"What's going on at work today? Anything special?"

David couldn't stop a huge smile at the realization. Today was the day that he could save Max from- no, _work with_ Max to prepare him for the banquet.

"I'm working on a fundraiser for our children's home! They’re going to be singing a song for all the adults at a banquet."

"Wow, you just can't escape working with kids, I guess."

"No no, it'll be fun!"

He could hear Gwen's fond smile. "You never get tired of stuff. Weirdo."

They talked about nothing in particular for a little while longer before David finally had to leave for work.

He wouldn't be visiting the main building today, and instead he’d be heading straight for the children’s home to see Max. After what he’d witnessed during his first visit, David was far too eager to get there. The poor kid was obviously not a favorite at the facility, and no matter what anyone else thought, being hated by every adult in charge wasn’t going to do anything to help his development.

Max needed some sort of support for once.

David was just about to walk into the children’s home once again before his phone vibrated.

_Gwen: hey that place u work for sounded kinda familiar so i googled it_   
_Gwen: call me as soon as u get off work_   
_Gwen: seriously_

What was that all about? It couldn’t possibly been anything new, David knew all of the ins and outs of the place and he’d only been there for a little while. Daniel trusted him with everything. He shrugged it off and slid his phone back in his pocket.

The woman from before, while a little confused by Daniel’s call regarding Max, wasn’t at all reluctant to give him up for a little while. Soon, a tired, grumpy little kid was led out into the foyer. He didn’t look up, didn’t say anything. David smiled out of pure relief seeing that Max was still… existing.

“You uh… you can talk to me, you know,” he said after a few silent seconds.

Max looked up with a raised eyebrow, waited for the terrible woman to go back to her office, and grinned rather mischievously. “So they finally found someone to keep me in line at all times, huh? This is gonna be great.”

“Keep you in…? No, this isn’t like that!”

“Oh, yeah?” Doubt was very much present in his voice.

“Yeah! We’re going to be hanging out and practicing for the fundraiser.”

Max raised an eyebrow once more, staring at David in utter disbelief. “Really? That’s it?”

David nodded enthusiastically. “Yep!” Nope.

\-----

The two of them sat in the home’s gymnasium and set up nothing but two chairs. David proudly pulled out his trusty guitar and started to try playing the notes in front of him.

“So the lyrics go…” David lifted the sheet of paper closer to his face, narrowing his eyes. He’d never heard the song before and it was full of strange otherworldly words. Something poetic about stars, the future of the planet, and Xemüg (whatever that was). “This… must be one of those songs that tells a… story. Maybe it’s a metaphor for something?”

Max snatched the paper out of his hands, looked it over, and laughed. “You’re funny.”

“What? Why?”

The boy stared at him for a good while, mouth hanging open as if David had grown a second head. “You’re not joking, are you?”

“Why would I be joking?”

“You really don’t know what this is about?”

“Should I?”

He stared at David a while longer, before he seemed to figure out that David was being serious. David briefly wondered if he’d done something wrong.

Max sputtered, “I- you really-? _David ,_ this is song about the ‘history’ of this whole ‘organization’,” He waved his arms around, gesturing to the whole room before shoving the lyric page in David’s face. “How fucking blind are you?”

David blinked and tried reading the lyrics once more. Maybe he missed something? But no, he definitely didn’t know what any of it meant.

“I don’t-”

Max laughed again, but this one was different - forced, angry. “Didn’t you know? We all come from space, and someday we’re going to go back to space and be with our lord and master _Xemüg!_ ” It took David a little to detect the sarcasm in Max’s voice (Gwen always told him he had a problem with that), but once he did, it was evident how much more aggression toward the organization the kid was hiding.

“So this is what we’re based on?”

Max exhaled heavily and crossed his arms before plopping back into the folded chair. “Yeah. And I have to hear about it every shitty day.”

“I didn’t realize this organization was religious.”

“Religious? This isn’t a fucking religion, David. C’mon. It's a scam.”

David shrugged. “It sure sounds like a religion!”

“You’re such an idiot. You practically run the place and you don’t even know what it’s all about.”

Okay, that kinda hurt. David had a feeling that that was a running theme with this little guy.

“I’m just trying to do some good anywhere I can, alright?”

Max looked away, brows furrowed and arms still crossed. One pupil and David still managed to lose his class. He sighed.

“Why don’t we try to practice this song? Do you sing, Max?”

“Nope.”

“Well, guess you do today!”

A groan.

David tried - and he tried really hard - but Max sure wasn’t an easy kid to teach. He ignored instructions, or sometimes followed every single one and then smugly replaced a lyric with a colorful swear word. David refused to get discouraged, reminding himself that the practice sessions weren’t why he was really there.

Max was getting more and more irritable as time went on. He started completely ignoring David in favor for pulling his knees up to his chest and playing with the strings on his white hoodie.

“I’m thinking that for the third line, you should-” David was cut off by a loud groan.

Max threw his arms in the air, shooting up off his seat. “Fuck off, okay? Can’t we be done with this stupid song already?!” His attempt at a stare-down might have been threatening if his stomach didn’t interrupt with a growl.

Realization hit David straight in the face. No wonder the kid was so grumpy!

“Oh! You’re hungry!”

“Yeah, no shit.” Max’s arms crossed once again, and it seemed to be his default position.

“Well, we can fix that pretty easily.”

\-----

David could feel Max’s confused stare the whole car ride, and then as he was telling the host how many to be seated. They were led to a table in the back of the restaurant. Thankfully so, too, because he didn’t want to run into anyone from work seeing him ‘go easy’ on the problem kid he promised to be making behave.

“Why are we eating here?” Max finally asked as David slid a menu in his direction.

“Because I’m hungry, and you’re hungry, and this is a restaurant!”

Max looked down but didn’t pick up the laminated menu. “Yeah, but… we could have just eaten in the cafeteria or something. Don’t you get meals for free?”

David shrugged. “I guess, I just didn’t feel like eating there today. Anywho, order anything you want. The kids’ menu is on the back!”

Max made a ‘psh’ noise. “Kids’ menu? Yeah right, I’m ordering steak.”

“Okay!”

They sat and looked over their menus for a while. David decided on a good ol’ burger and fries, and a milkshake to boot. The two of them ordered and eagerly awaited their meals. It was nice to see Max comfortable, and not scared of saying the wrong thing like he was with the lady at the children’s home. He actually seemed to be having a good time. And he seemed very hungry.

“Didn’t you eat any breakfast?” David asked, watching Max impatiently tap his fork against the table.

Max rolled his eyes. “Yeah right, like they’re gonna feed me after the stunt I pulled at lunch yesterday.” He abandoned the fork in favor for tapping with his fingers instead. “You know, I really thought the other kids would join in on a food fight. It’d be nice for someone else to get in trouble for a change.”

“Wait a minute,” David really hoped he was wrong. “You haven’t eaten since lunch yesterday?”

“I mean, I have a stash of stuff from dinners under my bed, but I usually have to be pretty fucking hungry to eat that stale garbage.”

David could feel his heart breaking more and more as Max spoke. Did they really take away meals as a form of punishment? No wonder Max was such a small kid, he never had enough nutrition in his body to grow. And Max acted like it was no big deal. This was totally normal for him.

It was horrifying.

He couldn’t help but be a little impressed at how much the kid could eat. David finally had to draw the line at dessert just to stop him from making himself sick, much to Max’s chagrin.

David decided that he and Max would need a lot of time to practice before the banquet.


	4. Chapter 4

The next few days were rather similar to one another. 

Max was still frustrated and angry, but this time he was comfortable enough with David to actually explain  _ why.  _ He still ate his weight in food, but this time he realized he didn’t need to rush it. 

One advantage David started to notice was that Max didn’t have a chance to do anything that would get him in trouble at the home when he was gone all day.

Things were working out. 

Things were working out so well that David had forgotten why he was doing all of this. Max needed help.

David didn’t want a kid like him to have to grow up somewhere so sterile and unpleasant. Kids needed color and creative outlets to develop and without that they wouldn’t really be kids, would they? He just needed to raise enough money to make the place better. All of the kids deserved it, not just Max.

With a heavy sigh, David dropped Max off and headed to Daniel’s office. They hadn’t seen each other much since David started his new project and he was starting to miss him. But the whole religion conversation was still fresh in his mind, and he couldn’t help but think Daniel had lied to him. It was possible he didn’t know everything, either? He could have just been hired for the position by the church or whatever it was without being told, just like David was. Yeah, that was it.

Part of him wanted to ask Daniel about it, but another part of him didn't. Probably the same part that decided he needed to rescue Max. David wasn’t so sure about either part at the moment.

“Why is everyone testing my patience today?!”

David stopped before he could wander into the office. He listened.

“If you’d like, fucking listen to me, I’d tell you!”

David knew that second voice. Jen, who did good enough work that she was the only one who could get away with swearing like that, especially to Daniel.

David jumped at a loud bang, sounding suspiciously like a fist against a desk.

“Stop!” an exhale. “Just… stop, okay? Everything will work out! Why won’t anyone believe that?!”

“Because it’s fucking delusional, Daniel! We can’t afford to keep-”

“No! No, no… we’re fine. It’ll work out. Just do your job. I’ll figure it out.”

It was impossible to hide as Jen stormed out of the office, a different binder in her hands this time. She took one look at David and stopped.

“Hey, if you ever wanna date someone who’s not, like, a total idiot, call me.” and then she was gone.

David blinked. Apparently everyone knew they were a couple now. He wasn’t as upset about that as he thought he should be.

He took a deep breath before making the brave venture into Daniel’s office. The desk was practically bare as everything it held was now scattered on the floor, and Daniel was on his sofa with his head in his hands. 

“Is everything okay?”

Daniel startled and looked up, but relaxed once again when he saw who it was. “That’s a good question.”

David sat next to him. He stayed silent for a few seconds, listening to David’s rapid breathing as he came down from whatever had just happened while Jen was there. He caught a glimpse of red on Daniel’s palm.

“Are you bleeding?!” David didn’t wait for him to answer before he grabbed Daniel’s arm to inspect the slash. Blood dripped down his wrist, too much blood.

“I’ll go find someone to treat it in a few minutes…” 

David followed his gaze to a broken glass vase, shattered on the floor right next to the wall. Oh dear. David didn’t like the tired slur in his voice. Remembering his first aid training from his time as a camp counselor, he could recognize when a cut was too deep to be helped with just a bandages and a little disinfectant. 

“Daniel, this is a really deep cut! I think you need to go to the hospital!”

Daniel yanked his hand out of his grasp. “No! No hospitals!”

It had caught David so off guard all he could do was sit and stare. Did he say something wrong? He must have, right?

“Wha-”

“Hospitals aren’t what they seem, David. Don’t you know that?”

No, apparently he didn’t. 

“It’ll be treated  _ here  _ by someone I trust not to fill my body with some poisonous med-” He stopped, looked down at his hand and gave a deep sigh. “I… I should probably go.”

David was left completely bewildered. He wasn’t sure what had just happened, but he wondered if it had to do with everything Max told him about the church’s religion. 

Maybe he should call Gwen back.

\-----

“Okay, what the  _ fuck , _ David? I tell you to call me and- I mean c’mon, it’s been like a week!”

“I know, I know! I’m sorry!” He keyed himself into his house with one hand, held the phone in his other. Coming home when it was dark out was always so eerie. David didn’t like seeing his house without the lights on, and for some reason it creeped him out even more tonight. “I’ve been really busy with this new fundraiser, okay? I’m so sorry, Gwen, really!”

Gwen didn’t acknowledge the apology. “Have you looked into that place at all?”

It took a moment for him to remember what she was referring to. “Of course I have. I work there,” he answered with a chuckle.

“No, have you  _ looked into it _ _?_ There’s some sketchy stuff going on there, David. There’s entire groups dedicated to getting people away from them and their charities.” David opened his mouth to say something, but she kept going. “Look, I need you to listen to me. You have to get away from them. They’re a scam, and a weird one. David, are you listening?”

David was ready to dismiss it, to tell her that none of it was true because he’d been working there long enough to know everything that went on there. Except the children’s home, and the strange religious teachings, and apparent hatred for medical facilities... 

Suddenly, David felt very uneasy. 

“I…” What could he say? David swallowed. He flipped on several light switches in his living room and kitchen just to make his house a little less creepy.

“I know you like it there, but… I don’t want to see you get involved in something sketchy.”

“I can’t just leave-”

“Why the fuck not?!”

David sighed, his voice going soft and quiet, “Because there’s kids involved, Gwen. That home is- I need to raise the money for it. Those kids deserve better.” Max deserved better.

There was a pause on the other end. He could practically hear Gwen thinking, planning out her next response. “How do you know the money you’re raising will actually go to them? I know you want to do good, but-”

“I can make sure it does!” His mind went back to the conversation between Daniel and Jen. It sounded like money was tight, really tight. The children’s home wasn’t going to get the help it needed without that fundraiser, because the organization simply wouldn’t be able to afford it.

“David…”

David had just calmed down enough to sit down when a knock on the door made him jump straight up again.

“Oh, someone’s at the door.”

“Keep me on until you see who it is.” 

Even before the whole organization, Gwen was nervous about the idea of David living alone. David had always assumed she was just going to miss him, but maybe that was why she was so upset when he moved away. Maybe she was worried about him.

David opened the door and breathed a sigh of relief. “It’s just Daniel! I have to go, Gwen. Talk to you later!”

“Daniel?! No David, wait-” but David had already ended the call. 

Daniel didn’t smile, only took a step or two inside so David could close the door behind him. 

He answered before David could even ask what was wrong, “We have to cancel the fundraiser. I’m so sorry, David.” Daniel didn’t seem all there. He didn’t visit David’s home very often, and definitely not unexpectedly. “Hilariously enough, we don’t even have enough money to raise money.”

The only thing he still had excitement for at his job, David realized, and it was being taken away from him. Being taken away from the kids. Being taken away from Max.

So David did something impulsive. 

“How much do you need?”

**\-----**

This fundraiser was going to keep going on if David could help it. He wasn’t going to leave the kids there in that horrible, gloomy facility with an untrained staff. He was going to help them, even if it meant donating his savings, his inheritance. That was all he needed to do, and then everything would work out.

Now, he once again was just another person who needed to work to live comfortably and David was okay with that.

Within a matter of minutes after the big donation, he and Daniel sat in his living room, both sipping on hot chocolate.

“I would’ve offered you some coffee, but...”

Daniel smiled, a sweet smile David hadn’t seen in a few days. “This is so much better!” A few seconds of silence passed, both of them tired from a long work day but enjoying each other’s presence. “Thank you for what you did, David. It’ll help a lot.”

“Just make it worth it, okay? For the kids?”

“Absolutely.”

More silence. The clock in David’s kitchen ticked a few times, and he never realized how much he hated the sound of that thing until now.

“So, who were you talking to?”

“Hm?” 

“On the phone, when I came over.” Daniel took a sip.

“Oh! My friend Gwen. Remember when I told you about her?”

“Gwen! Yes, I remember.”

David nodded. He smiled fondly thinking about his friend. She really needed to come visit him, and see his new house, meet his- well, whatever Daniel was.

“You should be careful with people outside the organization, though,” Daniel added it so casually David almost didn’t notice what he was saying. “You never know when people are trying to hinder your abilities.”

David blinked. “Right. Of course.” No, not ‘right of course’! What did that mean? Gwen was his best friend, she came before nearly everything in his life!

Eventually, they said their quiet, tired goodbyes, Daniel thanked David once again for the donation, and that was that.

David couldn’t sleep that night, too busy thinking about the events of that day. Gwen was probably right, and even if she wasn't, would it really hurt to just find another job? Maybe someone else in town was hiring now. 

And Max? What could he possibly do for Max if he left? Unless he could… 

Well, that would take a lot more consideration than any of his recent decisions. 

 

 


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> idk what i did but i sure did it

“Hey, are you gonna eat that?”

David shook his head of the fog he was in and saw Max staring at the uneaten fries in front of him.

“Go right ahead,” he yawned, sliding the french fry container toward Max, who had already eaten his own burger and fries.

At his request, they’d gone for fast food today. David was caught a little off guard by it at first, but he didn’t hesitate to go anyway. He wasn’t normally a fan, but today fast food sounded great.

“God, this is amazing,” Max said with a mouthful of french fry. “I can’t remember the last time I’ve been to McDonald’s. I was probably like five.”

Hearing that made David realized there was something about his new buddy that he had yet to learn.

“Max,” he started carefully.

Max looked up and seemed to notice the strange tone in his voice. He raised an eyebrow. “What? What’d I do?”

“Can I… can I ask about your parents?”

The boy’s eyes widened. “Yeah sure.” He sighed irritably, but it wasn’t aimed at David. He swallowed whatever was remaining in his mouth and sat back in his chair. “They left me here with a bunch of weirdos and went off to save the world at a different branch of the church or something.”

“They left you?”

“Yes, David, they left. And fuck them.”

An older couple glanced over at their table, but David didn’t feel like chastising him for his language. “Are they… coming back?”

Max gave him the same look he had before, like David was a complete idiot. “No, they’re not coming back. I belong to that stupid place now, after they convinced my parents I’d be better off being raised there at the home. You know, so I can learn all of that bullshit about feelings from space and grow up to ‘reach my full potential’.”

David frowned. “I’m so sorry, Max.”

“Yeah well, like I said, fuck them. I’m not the only one whose parents left them there, I’m just the only one with a brain left.”

“Everyone else’s parents are members?”

“Yeah?”

“They willingly gave up their kids to that place without a second thought.” Now he was figuring it out for himself, and it pissed him off. Who would do that? “Max, that’s terrible. What if someone wanted to adopt you?” It was an innocent enough question, considering the circumstances, right?

“They couldn’t. Daniel’s technically our- I dunno, parent, I guess. I mean, he fills out all the paperwork and stuff.” And Max went back to finishing off the remaining french fries.

David could cry right there. His current emotional state could probably be blamed on the lack of sleep the night before, but he couldn’t stand the thought of all of those kids being abandoned. Daniel never told him any of this, never even tried. The hope that Daniel hadn't known was slowly fading away and being replaced with a strange anger.

All of his money, gone. He wanted to make those kids’ lives better, but had he just made it worse by keeping the home running?

“What's your problem?”

David snapped out of his mind and found Max staring at him.

“Max, do you want out if the children's home? For good?”

“Are you kidding? Of course I fucking do.”

\-----

_Jen: tell daniel he can suck a dick_

David looked at the text for a long while, trying to make sure he was reading it correctly. He wasn't sure what had gone on between the two while he was with Max, but after their last argument, it couldn't have been good.

_David: Why?_

_Jen: your boyfriend fired me_   
_Jen: he didn't even have the fckin balls to tell me himself_   
_Jen: my office was cleaned out this morning_

_David: I'm so sorry_

Jen was part of the organization way before David had started there. She worked so hard she practically lived there, even spent volunteer hours in departments David wasn't completely aware of. The idea of her gone freaked him out, and gave him an awful sense of unease at his own job security.

_Jen: its Daniel who's gonna be sorry_

David frowned at the text.

“Wow, this is a great practice. I feel so prepared now,” came the deadpan voice that came from the kid sitting in front of him.

David was texting with one hand and held his guitar in the other. He cleared his throat, realizing he’d been staring at his phone for the past few minutes when he and Max were supposed to be ‘practicing music’.

“Sorry, Max. There's some trouble going on at work, I think.”

“Really?” a curious edge showing in his voice. “What kind of trouble?”

“I…” He breathed out in an attempt to calm himself. Everything was fine. He'd just talk to Daniel. “It's not important. Let's get back to the song!”

Max was on the edge of his seat now. “I don't give a fuck about the song, tell me what's going on!”

“Not now, okay Max?”

Max groaned dramatically after being refused some gossip. He flopped back against his chair, throwing his hands in the air. “C’mon, David. You've been acting weird all day. There's something you're hiding, and enough people around here hide stuff already!”

Thanks was almost enough to guilt David into it, but he couldn't. Max didn't deserve to have to listen to all the junk going on. David just needed to solve it and all would be okay.

Probably.

He could sure try to fix everything.

\-----

Daniel was in the middle of dinner when David showed up. He only ate dinner there when he had a lot of work, and with all of the financial problems, he most definitely did. He hadn’t lost the stressed look in his eyes for days.

David stood in the doorway for a good while, waiting to either think of what to say or for Daniel to notice him. The more he thought, though, the more upset he got.

“You lied to me.” Maybe it should have been a little more delicate, but it wasn’t possible today. David was angry and possibly heartbroken, and so tired.

Daniel looked up from his desk with wide eyes. “David! What are you-” he caught the look on David's face, voice suddenly lowering in a way David had never heard before. “What are you talking about?”

“You lied about the kids. And the- the whole belief system of this place! You didn't think to tell me that-?”

Daniel stood and held up his hands defensively. “Alright, listen… people need time to ease into our beliefs. Would you still have come here if I told you about our religion?”

David honestly wasn't sure, but Max's words rang in his head, _‘This isn’t a fucking religion, David. C’mon. It's a scam.’_ So David didn't answer.

“You adopted all those kids? Just because you want them raised _here ?”_

He believed it now. All of his money was gone to help people who wouldn't ever be helped and he believed it.

Daniel looked as if it wasn't true, like he was going to deny it all and promise to be honest with David in the future. Instead, he just sighed, a small breathy chuckle leaving him as he ran a hand through his hair.

 _“Fucking Max,”_ Daniel muttered before looking back up at the redhead. “I did what was right. Could you stand watching children be raised wrong, David?”

David narrowed his eyes. “No, I couldn’t.”

“I just… wanted them to grow up right. Not raised by all the nonsense society offers.”

There was nothing to say that wouldn’t end up with David yelling or - even worse - crying. So he stayed silent. This was the man he’d spent everyday with for over half the time since he moved there, and… this was who Daniel really was. Not some ridiculous, happy-go-lucky boss.

How could David be so stupid?

“One thing I never lied about was my feelings for you. Why do you think I fired Jen? She was trying to get to you.”

Daniel was doubled over before David could find an appropriate way to respond to something so ridiculous. He made a pained noise, wrapping an around around his stomach as he backed up to lean on his desk.

“What the hell…” he said through gritted teeth. Daniel looked behind him, closed his eyes, and sighed. “Jen.”

David caught a glance of what he was looking at: his dinner, which looked slightly less perfect than it usually did. Like someone else had prepared it.

Daniel’s voice was more angry than anything else. “Always knew she was... _agh!_ … crazy.” he doubled over even more until he was completely folded over his middle, looking in tremendous pain.

“Poison?! Daniel, you need-!”

 _“ No hospitals!”_ Daniel hissed, nearly crying out in pain as he did.

“You could die!” he argued helplessly.

“I’m willing to die for- for…” and he crumpled to the floor.

David yelped, and he was sure Daniel was dead. On further inspection, however, he was still breathing. Thank goodness.

David wasted no time calling an ambulance and letting them into the building before anyone could tell him otherwise. Nobody even bothered to question what was happening until they saw Daniel being brought out on a stretcher, but David didn’t feel like answering questions.

He ran to his car and followed the vehicle with more reckless driving than he’d ever done. His mind was racing and everything was too much and what was he going to do if Daniel didn’t survive?

….What was he going to do if Daniel _did survive?_

He shook his head of the thought. No one was dying right now. For all they knew, whatever Jen gave him wasn’t lethal, maybe it was just meant to mess with him. David really didn’t know. He just knew that he needed more answers, or… confirmation? And-

What would happen to Max?

David swerved into a spot at the hospital and ran from his car before he could overthink anymore. They wouldn’t let him come back, not if he wasn’t family. He considered lying, telling them that they’re brothers, but he couldn’t.

Instead, he asked them to let Daniel know of his presence when he woke up (if he woke up?) and found a spot in the waiting room.

He watched people come and go, some looking better off than others. He made kind small talk with a mother as her toddler started handing him blocks to hold onto, and tapped his foot impatiently as the clock showed time pass slower than ever. In the time, he had a chance to think about how much he missed home. Gwen, his mother… there was no one around to help him through this but himself.

Too much time passed before someone came to get him.

“David? Daniel has asked to see you.”

Thank goodness. She informed him of his condition as they walked, and he learned Daniel would be completely fine in a couple days. She chuckled fondly at how much convincing it took to get him to agree to staying in the hospital for the night, but David couldn’t it very funny.

Soon, they turned into a room, and David had to stifle a gasp at the site of Daniel. He looked so weak when he was in a hospital gown, and had cords connected to him. No IV, David noticed. He had a feeling Daniel fought them on that pretty hard before they finally just compromised on the heart monitor.

Daniel didn’t smile. He didn’t do much of anything, really. David even wondered for a moment if he knew he was there, but he could feel those blue eyes land on him.

“It’s good to see you well!” David forced a smile, his voice shaking a little too much.

Daniel just stared and didn’t say anything at first. If David was being honest, it was almost intimidating, or it would be had he not been in a hospital bed.

Finally, a hoarse, “Listen to me very carefully.”

David stilled.

Daniel took a deep breath. “I never want to see your face again. I want your things out of my building, I want you to leave, and I want you to do it _quietly ._ Do you understand me, David?”

Any affection for him harbored in Daniel’s eyes disappeared without a trace. And it was terrifying. David’s blood ran cold at the expression the man held. Anger.

“I… I don’t understand,” David admitted. “You could have died!”

“You should have _l_ _et_ _me die!”_ Daniel growled out.

David startled and stepped back. He looked for any hint of remorse in Daniel’s eyes for what he was doing, and found none.

So David left.

He wanted to drive home to his family and never look back, and he just might have if he was the only one involved. But he wasn’t, so David drove to the police instead.

He explained everything. He explained what went on in the children’s home, and where most donations to the organization went, how Daniel had adopted or stolen all of those children and then left them to be raised by horrible people in a horrible place.

He didn’t have much evidence, but the police were interested. They told him that that was just what they needed to finally start an investigation on that place, and that he should go home and rest. They’d call and update him when they needed more help.

He went home, flipping on one light switch and looking around contentedly.

David was relaxed for the first time that day, or week, or month.

Everything would work out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Possible epilogue or something? It's more likely than you think

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading! hope everyone has a good day/week/year!


End file.
